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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25182892">two steps to the left</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ford_Ye_Fiji/pseuds/Ford_Ye_Fiji'>Ford_Ye_Fiji</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Mister Roberts (1955)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, BECAUSE THATS WHAT I WANTED DARN IT, Gen, THATS WHAT ROBERTS DESERVED, Yet another fandom with no works, and I’m here to deliver, and I’m mad, im on it, this is very self indulgent, this movie NEEDED a better ending</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 07:35:46</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>737</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25182892</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ford_Ye_Fiji/pseuds/Ford_Ye_Fiji</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>In another universe, everything is the same. But somehow, different.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>two steps to the left</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I stayed up till one am writing this after I saw the movie because I was furious- which, btw, SUCH a good movie. Terribly sad ending, though. But don’t worry I did my best to fix it!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1"><span class="s1">The sequence of events goes like this, junior grade Lieutenant, Doug Roberts, executive officer and cargo chief of the <em>Reluctant</em> and a good and kind man, finally receives the transfer he so desires. Ironically, he leaves with reluctance. Not because of a great fondness for the captain, certainly not, but because of his great fondness for the crew. These are men that he has sacrificed much for and stood up for in the face of tyranny, men who have given back by presenting to him as best they could what he wished for most. Despite how hellish his months have been on the Reluctance, he hesitates to leave those men behind. But, in the end, he does and leaves for the acclaimed destroyer the USS </span> <span class="s2"><em>Livingston.</em></span></p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">In one universe, his story ends not much longer after that.</span>
</p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">He dies on the </span> <span class="s2"><em>Livingston</em>, </span><span class="s1">in the middle of a coffee break when a Japanese Kamikaze fighter plane slams into the side of the boat and kills many of the crew. He doesn’t change much of anything, he hardly sees any of the war, and all of his dreams, hopes, and possibly bright future is gone with him. All that remains of his memory is a boat of sixty-two men somewhere on the pacific seas who love him dearly and who had followed him as best they could to the very end.</span></p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">This is the end of Mr. Roberts. His entire person reduced to a story cut abruptly short, as so many are, the epilogue of his life only a few words on a page, a last defiant act in his memory, and the taste of ashes and salt on a tongue.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">In another universe, however, what happens is very different.</span>
</p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">In another universe, the Kamikaze plane still slams into the </span> <span class="s2"><em>Livingston</em></span><span class="s1">. This time, instead of killing Roberts, it stops just shy of him. Though heavily injured and at great risk of his own life, Roberts acts quickly and drags as many people as he can from the burning and broken wreckage of ship and plane.</span></p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Mr. Roberts saves fifteen lives.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Mr. Roberts' quick-thinking, bravery, and valor is recognized and he receives the Medal of Honor for his actions.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He spends the rest of the few months remaining in the war in a hospital recovering from his wounds. Unfortunately, in this universe, he is unable to write many letters and, the few that he does write, due to a mishap in the mail system, never end up reaching their destination.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The Reluctant receives no further word from Mr. Roberts after his first letter. All they hear from their other source is that Mr. Roberts is gone. They assume the worst.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">But, several months later, as they come into a port, the weather beaten, weary, and downtrodden crew step off the gangplank, mourning their loss of Liberty, when a familiar figure approaches them.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">At first, they don’t believe it. They rub their eyes, they turn to the others standing beside them and ask wondering questions, "Do you fellas see that?" "Is that who I think it is?"</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">And then with a whoop and a holler, Frank Pulver practically throws himself at the other man with a wild, "Why didn't you write us you mangy sea dog? We thought you were dead!"</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">And then the dam breaks and they surround their lost comrade with shouts of excitement and congratulations. It takes them a few moments to get the story and then they all proceed to shake his hand enthusiastically and all say that they "knew he was destined for great things."</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">For, on his uniform, among others, pinned next to a wonderfully familiar heavy brass palm tree is the congressional Medal of Honor.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When the captain of the <em>Reluctant</em> gathers at the bow of his ship to scold his crew for such an ungainly ruckus and to demand why they weren’t doing their jobs, he sees Mr. Roberts.</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He turns red with anger, and for a single moment, he seems truly terrible. Then Mr. Roberts waves his hand, that cool smile on his face, and Captain Morton sees the medals on his chest. </span>
</p><p class="p2">Morton pales.</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Mr. Roberts smiles, "Lieutenant Commander."</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Morton swallows as he catches sight of the stripes on Mr. Roberts' uniform. He straightens, ears red, eyes wide, neck pale, and salutes, "Commander Roberts."</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The crew of the <em>Reluctant</em> dissolves into cheers and Commander Roberts is the loudest of them all.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
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